Chapter 56

Character count (including spaces and line breaks): 3951 characters

Character count (excluding spaces and line breaks): 3778 characters

How long have I been under the illusion that updates were only for yesterday? Anyway, here's the second day's update. Consider it a substitute for an apology.

Ichi-chan has also joined the JC, so there's no helping it. A showdown between three Triple Crown horses will go down in history...!

"Come on, get in quickly!"

"There are only so many carriages; women and children have priority!"

"Men, walk, got it?"

"Only bring the minimum amount of luggage you can carry in your hands. Leave the furniture behind!"

Johan's declaration—that those who followed the evacuation order would be exempt from next year's taxes—spread through the village like wildfire across the grasslands.

A new kind of fervor took hold of the villagers, who rushed to the carriages prepared at the center of the village, each trying to be first.

Here, too, there was a brief argument about whether to allow people to bring their belongings, but the issue was quickly resolved.

"Those who do not follow the instructions of the evacuation guides will be considered obstructive and will not be exempt from taxes. They will also be subject to additional labor duties."

As the lord, this was an official order. The moment Johan spoke these words, the message spread urgently throughout the village, and the villagers began to follow the instructions.

It was a classic carrot and stick approach, and it worked incredibly well.

Merchants visiting the village even offered their carriages in exchange for payment for their goods, and the evacuation proceeded smoothly, a stark contrast to the chaos just moments before.

However,

"What, one of the messenger horses has collapsed?"

"Yes, it seems to have been startled by the commotion, got agitated, and then ran into the stable wall..."

It broke its leg. The stable hand told Johan this with a sad expression.

Horses are delicate creatures. They likely became anxious due to the commotion in the middle of the night and started to panic.

"Pity, but there's nothing we can do about what's already happened. Has it affected the other horses?"

"One horse was slightly injured, but its legs are fine, so it shouldn't be a problem. It can still be used for the carriage or as a messenger."

"I see... That's a stroke of luck. However, that means one of the letters will be wasted."

While directing the village's evacuation, Johan muttered to himself. With one less messenger horse, he had to reconsider which letters to send and which to hold back. There was no time to think slowly.

"No choice, the letter to Ouvan's village will have to be delivered on foot..."

Just as he was about to give this order,

"Kui! Kui kui!"

Suddenly, an unusual cry echoed through the village.

"Whoa! What's that?"

"A monster!?"

Drawn by the cry, the villagers looked up to see an unfamiliar creature. It was a Neut.

"That's a baby dragon!""It's not just spiders coming, then!?"

"Calm down, everyone, it's not an enemy.""Buru buru buru""How, how! Calm down! Calm down!"

Flapping its wings, the Neut landed in front of Johan. Even though it was still a young dragon, its body was as large as an adult man, covered in the smooth scales characteristic of dragons. For the villagers, who had only ever encountered deer, boars, and goblins, it was a terrifying sight.

The villagers began to panic, and their unease spread, causing the horses tied to the carriages to become agitated, sensing the smell of the dragon.

"Hey, don't go out there!"

"Neut, come back!"

"Emilia, Katia! Both of you, get in the carriage quickly!"

As Johan tried to calm the villagers and quell the chaos, he heard the voice of a young child coming from the direction of the manor.

When Johan turned around, he saw his two step-sisters running towards him in their nightgowns. Shortly after, the other sisters and his wife, Katia, followed.

"I'm sorry, big brother... They slipped away while I wasn't looking."

"No, I should be the one apologizing for not being able to help. So, is the evacuation preparation complete?"

"Yes, we just need to get in the carriage."

While saying, "I told you not to go out," the second step-sister, Franca, firmly held Emilia and Katia's hands to keep them from letting go.

"Because of Neut."

It seemed the younger step-sisters had chased after Neut. And as for Neut itself,

"Kui! Kui kui!"

It was making a noise and nodding its head, trying to convey something. However, Johan couldn't understand what it meant.

"What's going on?"

"...I get it!"

Just as Johan was confused, his step-sister Emilia solved the mystery.

"What do you mean?"

"Neut wants that letter!"

"Letter...? I see, that makes sense!"

Thanks to Emilia's insight, Johan finally understood the young dragon's intention. The nodding of its head was a signal to give it the letter in his hand.

Even if it was a young dragon, a dragon's flying speed was much faster than a horse at full gallop. If Johan entrusted the letter to Neut, help might arrive much sooner than expected.

(But then...)

The problem was which letter to entrust to Neut. Neut had successfully delivered the letter from Nod to Johan. However, among the letters Johan needed to send, some were addressed to towns and villages Neut had never been to. Without a dragon rider to guide it, it would be impossible for Neut to deliver a letter to a place it had never been.

Thus, the options were narrowed down to two.

The first was to entrust a letter to a nearby town. The closest town to Alba Village had an adventurer's guild. If an urgent message could be delivered there, the guild would accept the request and dispatch adventurers according to the content of the letter.

The second option was to entrust a letter to the capital directly. This was a much greater distance, but if the situation was understood by the people in the capital, they would immediately respond to Lord Johan's request and dispatch the knight order.

(Which one... which is the right choice?)

It was a difficult decision. Each option had its "uncertainties" and "reasons" for being the right choice.

The uncertainty with the first option was whether Neut could actually reach the nearby town. As far as Johan remembered, Nod had taken Neut to the adventurer's guild in the town, so it was certain that Neut had been to the location of the town. However, unlike Nod, Johan had not received training as a dragon rider and could not give Neut precise instructions on which base to deliver the letter to. There was a risk that the letter might be delivered to the wrong place. The reason to choose this option was that the sooner the adventurer's guild was notified, the sooner the damage could be minimized. The adventurers, with their extensive experience fighting monsters, were undoubtedly the best force to combat the monsters in the area. Even low-level adventurers, such as Crystal or Bronze, could fight the knight spiders effectively. Moreover, if the message reached the town with the adventurer's guild, they could send urgent messages to nearby villages, other adventurer's guilds, and the "Eastern Knight Order" via fast horses. If the contents of Nod's letter were true, the swarm of spiders was led by a myth-era monster—the Queen Spider. Although it was hard to believe, if it were true, the threat was too great for ordinary adventurers to handle. The sooner high-level adventurers, such as Silver or higher, or a knight order, could be dispatched, the better. Even a minute or two could make a difference. The greatest potential benefit of entrusting the letter to Neut was undoubtedly this.

The uncertainty with the second option—sending the letter to the capital—was the distance. Although dragons were known to be incredibly fast, capable of reaching the border from the capital in a single day, it was uncertain whether the young Neut could match the speed of the adult dragons used by the knight order. If it took several days, it would be more efficient to use the existing method of fast horses. The reason to choose this option was the opposite of the first: the capital was a place Neut was likely to reach with certainty. From what Johan had heard from Nod, Neut had spent a long time in the capital and the dragon rider order's base. It was likely that Neut had spent most of its life there. Like a pet dog returning to its owner's home, Neut's "homing instinct" would likely lead it to the capital—either the Felis family's residence or the Iron Dragon Knight Order.

When comparing the two options calmly, the potential benefits of sending Neut to the nearby town were greater. The risk of the letter not reaching its destination was not a significant issue, as multiple copies of important letters were usually sent. Out of the three letters Johan had prepared for the nearby town, two had already been entrusted to messengers. The remaining one was the only one in question, and the risk was minimal.

However, Johan's decision was gradually tilting towards entrusting the letter to the capital. The reason was:

(To begin with, is the Eastern Knight Order even available...?)

The uncertainty was the possibility that the knight order was not present. Originally, I intended to write a bit more and post around 5000 characters, but since it ended nicely, I decided to post it.

This part was mostly explanatory.

As I mentioned in the afterword of the previous chapter, the manga version of my work, "The Adventures of the Impoverished Noble Nod," is being serialized on Comic Earth Star. I hope those who are interested will take a look. I've included a link in the activity report.

It's unclear whether I'll update tomorrow. Even if it's ready, there's a possibility I'll hold it until next weekend.